FO: Feathers

Way back in January 2014, I posted about the Feathers QAL, for the pattern by Alison Glass and Nydia Khenle.

I worked through the blocks fairly quickly, and instagram tells me that I finished the quilt top 93 weeks ago. So, the gist is, it took me less than a year to finish the top, and then it sat for over a year.

But, good news! I finished it, and here is proof!

I really love how it turned out, and I never tire of that cerise Architextures background!

We visited McKinney Falls over the weekend for a hike, and took this quilt along.

I used a big piece of a Melissa Averinos Sugar Snap print (Spirograph!) and two coordinating prints for the back. I quilted it with three different colors of thread in "organic" straight lines.

It feels good to get a 2014 WIP finished up so it can be loved again!

FO: Show Pillow

Elliott called this 'the Show pillow' when I first finished it (months ago), and it stuck.
I think what he meant by the comment is that it's fancy.
Good enough for company!

It makes me smile everytime I look at it, and I guess that's what's important.

I started this pillow in May of 2012, at the Houston MQG retreat. I just started quilting Liberty scraps, using a soft pink thread.

The project lingered for a long time. I would quilt a few and set it down again. Then late last year (maybe September or October), I finished in a frenzy.

I bound it in this favorite black and white.

I love how it looks in our living room.

January recap - new recipes

Olias, because I dislike pictureless posts.

I had grand plans to share this earlier, but I set a challenge to try three new recipes each month this year (in hopes of working my way through some saved pages/pins and a modest cookbook stash). In January, we managed to try six new dishes! I thought I'd make a monthly entry here to keep track of the ones we tried, and maybe you'll find some dinner inspiration.

-Slow Cooker Enchilada Soup from Skinnytaste
This was tasty, but I think I would add more vegetables next time.

-Lemon chicken pita burgers
We loved these, but I'll add more seasoning next time. We also used a whole egg instead of egg whites.

-Tangy Carrot Salad (again, from Skinnytaste)
This was a favorite. I devoured it. I love lemon.

-One pan roasted chicken and vegetables from The Make Ahead Cookbook
Loved this, and will make again. The dark meat could have been removed a few minutes early, but everything had great flavor.

-Apple Walnut Salad from Homesick Texan Family Table
We made a few mods to this, like pecans instead of walnuts. Super tasty.

-Molasses bacon sausage (again, Homesick Texan)
Um, yeah. This was amazing, and we actually have some in our freezer right now. And I want to eat it all.

FO: Waypoint

My friend Jeni wrote an amazing book that came out last fall. Patchwork Essentials is a great resource, no matter your skill level. It has charts (Jeni loves charts!) for creating half square triangles of different size using various methods.

And it has patterns like Waypoint.

This quilt immediately grabbed me when I opened Jeni's book. Part of the reason is probably her color choices (she used a favorite line, Sugar Pop, with lots of orange and purple). The pattern also appealed to me, because it lets large focal prints shine.

The Alexander Henry floral print I used is a favorite from the stash. I never had a plan for that print, but I love the colors and the boldness, so it seemed like a perfect choice in this quilt.

I chose others from the stash, building on the floral, and the top came together in less than a week.

I finally quilted it a few weeks ago, and bound it in a lovely mustard.

As usual, I made a scrappy back for it, in grays and pinks with little yellow pops.

Elliott helped me with the photos, but as you can see, it was a windy weekend. We took the finished shots in Galveston, during a day trip on Saturday.

I've already got a second project in the works from Jeni's charts, and I hope to share that in the next few months.